SPRINGFIELD — Timothy Forbes was found guilty Tuesday by a Hampden Superior Court jury of mayhem in a case in which he was charged with biting off part of the ear of a coach at a youth basketball game.

Forbes, 34, of Springfield, was sentenced to three to four years in state prison by Judge Constance M. Sweeney.

He was also found guilty of assault and battery causing serious bodily injury for the same incident, with the sentence on that to run concurrent with the mayhem sentence.
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Jose Feliciano, 35, of West Springfield, was coaching the Migs – a team of fifth and sixth graders – at a Catholic Youth Organization championship game March 9 at the Holy Name School gymnasium.

Forbes' two sons were on the opposing team – the Heat – and had both fouled out of the game while the Heat was winning.

The Migs went on to win the game.

As the two teams lined up as usual after the game to pass by each other to slap or shake hands in camaraderie, Forbes attacked him, Feliciano testified.

During closing arguments the focus was on how seriously Feliciano was injured and whether Forbes intentionally maimed Feliciano.

Before closing arguments, Dr. David H. Refermat, chief of plastic surgery at Baystate Medical Center, testified he performed surgery on Feliciano. He said about two inches of the total five inches of the ridge of the ear was gone.

In order to get a normal ear shape through surgery, Refermat said, he had to make the whole ear smaller.

He said it was hard to reattach the ear because of the “crush type” injury and because of cartilage. In addition there is the risk of infection with a human bite, he said.

Under questioning from defense lawyer Vincent A. Bongiorni, Refermat said he sees about 10 human bite cases a year and has never seen a case of a human bite of an ear while at Baystate.

Assistant District Attorney Max Bennett told jurors in his closing argument that Feliciano now has one ear significantly smaller than the other.

“The ear that he had before is gone,” Bennett said. “His appearance is forever changed.”

Feliciano was backing up when attacked by Forbes, Bennett said. He said Forbes would have a reasonable expectation his action in clamping his teeth with force on Feliciano’s ear it would maim the ear.

Bongiorni, in his closing argument to jurors, said “this is a case of assault and battery and nothing else.” He said it was not a case of mayhem or assault and battery causing serious bodily injury.

Bongiorni told jurors they should consider whether Feliciano was permanently disfigured. “I’m suggesting the answer to that is no,” he said.

Bongiorni said the prosecution did not prove Forbes had a specific intent to rip or tear off Feliciano’s ear. He said the prosecution didn’t explain why Forbes would make an unprovoked attack on Feliciano.

“Did the Commonwealth explain what could have caused it?” he said.

Feliciano had testified the assault was unprovoked and nothing was said before Forbes assaulted him. Forbes did not testify at the trial.

Bongiorni argued that even if Forbes bit down on Feliciano’s ear, it was the force of people trying to separate Forbes from Feliciano that caused the ear to tear off.